Manchester United announce plans for new 100,000-seat stadium

LONDON: Manchester United on Tuesday announced plans to build a new 100,000-capacity stadium that co-owner Jim Ratcliffe said would be the “world’s greatest” football ground.

The decision by the Premier League club came after an extensive consultation process around whether to develop their existing historic Old Trafford stadium or build a new one close by, in conjunction with the Old Trafford Regeneration Task Force.

United have now confirmed their “intention to pursue a new 100,000-seater stadium as the centrepiece of the regeneration of the Old Trafford area”.

The club hopes the new ground can be finished in five years.

Scaled models and conceptual images for how the new Old Trafford and surrounding area could look like were revealed on Tuesday at the London headquarters of architects Foster + Partners, appointed in September to design the stadium district.

“Today marks the start of an incredibly exciting journey to the delivery of what will be the world’s greatest football stadium, at the centre of a regenerated Old Trafford,“ Ratcliffe said.

“Our current stadium has served us brilliantly for the past 115 years, but it has fallen behind the best arenas in world sport.”

Ratcliffe said by building next to the existing site the club would be able to “preserve the essence of Old Trafford, while creating a truly state-of-the-art stadium that transforms the fan experience only footsteps from our historic home”.

The club said the stadium and a wider regeneration project had the potential to deliver an additional £7.3 billion ($9.4 billion) per year to the UK economy, including the possible creation of 92,000 new jobs.

The move to a new ground has been backed by former United boss Alex Ferguson, who won 13 Premier League titles during his reign of more than 26 years.

“Manchester United should always strive for the best in everything it does, on and off the pitch, and that includes the stadium we play in,“ Ferguson said.

“Old Trafford holds so many special memories for me personally, but we must be brave and seize this opportunity to build a new home, fit for the future, where new history can be made.”

Sebastian Coe, who chaired the task force, said Tuesday “marks an important step forward in what I firmly believe can be the biggest and most exciting urban regeneration project in the UK since the 2012 London Olympics.”

United hope the stadium can be built in five years, with sections to be constructed off site and transported along the Manchester Ship Canal.

The start date remains uncertain.

Regarding the financing of the project, chief executive Omar Berrada added: “It’s a very attractive investment opportunity so we’re quite confident we’ll find a way to finance the stadium.”